The SEC just wrote its first real crypto rule

Wednesday, August 19, 2026

After canceling the meeting meant to vote on it just five days ago, the SEC quietly dropped its first major crypto rule proposal Tuesday evening. “Regulation Crypto Assets” offers two paths for token projects to raise money without being treated as securities offerings — a $5 million startup track and a $75 million annual track with fuller disclosure requirements. It opens 60 days for public comment and doesn’t resolve everything, but it’s the first formal rulemaking in Chairman Paul Atkins’ tenure. Meanwhile the bond market is sending a loud macro signal: the U.S. 30-year Treasury briefly hit 5.333% — the highest in nearly two decades — while Japanese, German and French government bond yields simultaneously hit multi-decade highs. Stocks fell on all three sessions this week. Bitcoin, six weeks into the same $61,500–$66,900 range, has held. FOMC minutes drop today, and with three of twelve Fed voters dissenting in favor of a rate hike at July’s meeting, this release matters more than usual. Stay alert.

Read today’s full report →

Market snapshot

As of 8am EST

Asset

Price

24h

BTC

$64,431

+0.41%

ETH

$1,903

+0.20%

SOL

$75.20

+1.20%

XRP

$0.99

−0.50%

Prices approximate. Visit coindesk.com/price for live data.

A message from Grayscale

Grayscale Hyperliquid Staking ETF (ticker: HYPG) is the lowest-fee HYPE fund in the U.S.¹ Hyperliquid is emerging as critical infrastructure for onchain markets — a high-performance blockchain that processed nearly $3 trillion in derivatives volume and generated ~$800 million in revenue in 2025, with no venture capital backing.²

Lowest management fee in its category (0.29%)
Over $100 million in AUM³
Potential staking rewards — HYPG seeks to stake 70%+ of its assets; HYPE staking rewards averaged ~2.2% last year.⁴

HYPG, an exchange traded product, is not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (“40 Act”), and therefore is not subject to the same regulations and protections as 40 Act registered ETFs and mutual funds. HYPG is subject to significant risk and heightened volatility. HYPG is not suitable for an investor who cannot afford the loss of the entire investment. An investment in HYPG is not a direct investment in HYPE.

Learn more

¹ Lowest-fee HYPE fund in the U.S. based on management fee of 0.29%. Brokerage fees and other expenses may apply.

² Crypto Briefing, December 26, 2025.

³ Bloomberg L.P. as of 6/X/26. Subject to change.

⁴ Stakingrewards.com. Historical daily average measured from 5/1/25 to 04/21/26. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

This information must be preceded or accompanied by a Grayscale Hyperliquid Staking ETF prospectus, which may be obtained by clicking here. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

This information should not be relied upon as research, investment advice, or a recommendation regarding any security in particular. Potential staking rewards are earned by the Fund. Staking rewards are not guaranteed and should not be considered an indication of Fund performance. The Fund’s ability to engage in staking is conditional and may be modified. Staking requires that the Fund lock up HYPE for the period of time required by the staking protocol, meaning the Fund cannot sell or transfer the staked HYPE, thereby making it illiquid for the period it is being staked. Foreside Fund Services, LLC is the Marketing Agent for the Fund. © 2026 Grayscale.

CoinDesk Disclosure: The information contained in this newsletter, and any information linked through the items contained herein, is not intended to provide sufficient information to form the basis for an investment decision. You should seek additional information regarding the merits and risks of investing in any cryptocurrency or digital assets.

L1.co Disclosure: This material is for informational purposes only, and the content contained herein should not be considered investment advice or a solicitation, offer, or recommendation to sell or buy any asset, strategy, or product. Investing in digital assets involves a high degree of risk, including the loss of principal.

What matters today

Markets

Story 1 of 3

Fed decision-making comes into focus as bitcoin holds steady and bond yields surge.

Bitcoin has been locked between $61,500 and $66,900 since July 8 — six weeks without a decisive break in either direction — while a global bond rout has unfolded around it. The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield briefly touched 5.333% on Tuesday, its highest level in nearly two decades. Japan’s 10-year yield hit a 30-year high; Germany’s 30-year bund reached levels last seen in 2011; France’s equivalent went back to 2008. The Nasdaq 100 fell 1.3% on Tuesday — its steepest single-session loss since early August — and the S&P 500 posted its third straight daily decline. Bitcoin’s 30-day realized volatility has hit multi-year lows while implied volatility has stayed elevated, meaning the market expects a big move without knowing which direction it goes. The 72% chance of no September rate hike on Polymarket and the 67% on CME’s FedWatch both suggest traders think the Fed holds, but that view rests on softening data from a few weeks ago — data that predates the recent oil surge and the record crack spread. The FOMC minutes from the July 28-29 meeting, releasing today, are therefore unusually important: at that meeting, three of the twelve voting members dissented in favor of a rate hike, making this one of the more closely watched releases of the year. Whatever tone the minutes set will either confirm or complicate the market’s 72% base case. For bitcoin, the opportunity cost argument cuts both ways: a 30-year Treasury paying above 5% is a genuine competitor, but gold — which also pays nothing — has gained 8% this month while bitcoin is flat, suggesting something else beyond yield competition is driving the divergence. Brent crude is at $91. The dollar is soft. Maya Protocol was exploited for $11 million overnight.

Markets

Story 2 of 3

Bitcoin stuck in a six-week range as global bond yields hit highest levels for decades.

Bitcoin’s derivatives market paints a picture of a market in suspended animation. Open interest has drifted to $21.8 billion, down from the $23 billion peak seen around August 11. The decline, alongside range-bound price action, suggests traders are unwinding positioning rather than building new bets — consistent with a market waiting for a catalyst. The long-short taker ratio remains marginally bullish across short timeframes but flips slightly bearish on the daily, at 50.21% in favor of shorts, suggesting overnight positioning is less decisive than intraday activity. Funding rates remain marginally positive across major venues (BTC’s OI-weighted rate at 0.0049%, ETH at 0.0022%), far from the elevated levels that would signal overleveraged longs. The largest single liquidation in the past 24 hours was a $23.35 million BTC-USD position on Hyperliquid. On Deribit, short-dated implied volatility sits at 20.4% for the August 20 expiry with the expected price move priced at roughly ±$656 — and options activity concentrated around $64,000–$65,000. The BTC futures basis is broadly positive but modest: August 28 contracts show annualized basis of around 12%, September 25 Deribit at 7.12% — upside priced in, but without excessive optimism. In token news: ENA gained 2.99% to $0.0852; LINK added 1.82% to $9.70 after Standard Chartered’s bullish forecast last month; NEAR rose 1.76% as AI-adjacent tokens found buyers; PUMP fell 3.23% giving back Monday’s gains. The CMC Altcoin Season indicator is at 44/100, holding firm since a dip to 37/100 on August 7. And the divergence that tells the summer story plainly: gold is up 8% this month while BTC is flat. If this were purely about yield competition, gold would be flat too. Bitcoin is facing a different headwind.

Policy

Story 3 of 3

The SEC just proposed its first major crypto rule. It came as a surprise.

Five days after canceling the meeting that was supposed to vote on it, the SEC issued its first significant crypto rulemaking on Tuesday evening. Chairman Paul Atkins’s commission released a proposal for “Regulation Crypto Assets” — distinct from the separately stalled “innovation exemption” for tokenized securities — which would create two formal pathways for token projects to raise money without triggering full securities-law requirements. The first is a startup track: up to $5 million over a four-year period, with public filings at the start and end of that window. The second allows up to $75 million per year but requires more disclosure, including financial statements and ongoing reporting requirements similar to certain investment-contract rules. Both tracks are subject to anti-fraud and manipulation provisions within securities law. Crucially, the proposal also includes a safe harbor that lets a crypto asset exit investment-contract status once the issuer has completed all essential management efforts it promised — a direct response to one of the industry’s longest-standing complaints that completed projects remain trapped under securities law. “Today, we are charting a new course with a package of exemptions that would facilitate capital formation and allow crypto asset innovation to flourish in the United States,” Atkins said. The SEC is inviting 60 days of public comment before it can finalize the rule. Atkins was clear that legislation still matters: “Legislation remains indispensable to enacting future-proofed rules of the road.” Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone said the agency incorporated several industry suggestions. The proposal is meaningful even at the proposal stage — the cancellation of the meeting just days earlier had given the impression that the SEC was pulling back, making the surprise release all the more notable. Congress has three weeks of floor time in September to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act before a lengthy recess, and the Senate’s ability to get to 60 votes remains the open question.